Persona
by Estrea
Summary: AU/Genderbender. Massive crossover cast spanning not only the boys from Mendol, but also various idol groups. High School comedy/drama/whathaveyou. Consider yourself warned.
1. Chapter 1: First Steps

Hi everyone this is a new story from me. Never ever thought I would be writing anything related to AKB48, but Mendol won me over, among other things, and so here I am. This is a joint work between me and **badsaints**, so at least half the creative rights are hers. XD I love you honey~

**WARNING**: This is a complete AU from Mendol universe. The boys actually are boys. Yes, male. If you're not a fan of actual gender-bending, **TURN BACK NOW! **You might notice some AKB girls. That is to be expected. You will possibly also notice a few Morning Musume girls. That is because I am a huge fan of Morning Musume and if I can get away with throwing them all together into one story, I will. XD Massive crossover-ing and crack ahead. Ages are not relative to each other as in real life. Will provide a guide as to a who's who at the end of the chapter. You have been warned.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Mendol, or any of the girls from AKB48 or Morning Musume. Even though I wish I did. Oh the things I could do then. Like make a movie! Or a drama! Wait, stuff like Mendol exists. Hey Japan, make more of this kinda drama already!

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><p>He could see it now.<p>

It was everything he had worked for. The heat of a thousand thousand bodies packed closely together, cheering, screaming. They belonged to him, his fans, and he was theirs, body and soul.

He raised his head, feeling the blinding glare of the spotlights, a liquid warmth creeping over his head and neck. This was a moment to die, no, to live for. He would give up everything, do everything in his power, just to stand on this stage. To belong as he never had, and to know his worth in this very moment.

This was being alive. This was being real. This was...

A pain in the neck? His head flew forward and he literally faceplanted into his textbook. He had a brief glimpse of the _murder weapon_ whisked back into its usual function as the study handbook, unrolled and ready in his buxom homeroom teacher's hands. She went on as if nothing happened, and he glowered at her while rubbing the back of his head. From a different vantage point, it almost looked like he was deeply focused on her ass.

"Goto-sensei really has it in for you, doesn't she?" His neighbour was _not_ helping. Scowling, the boy turned to look at the grinning Sashihara Reno, voted one of the most popular seniors and current president of the student council. To the rest of the guys in the same homeroom, he was just Sasshi, laidback and cool. Normally he really liked the guy. Now he just wanted to punch him. Nicely, of course. Sasshi's fangirls might kill him otherwise.

Out of the corner of his eye, two seats away, he caught Oshima Yuko muffling a snicker. The girl spotted him looking, and so re-enacted the previous moment with a swish of her hand and a very exaggerated faceplant forward. It was a good thing he didn't hit girls. That and her dimples were very convincing. What, he _was_ a normal teenage boy!

So he only stuck his tongue out childishly at the other moodmaker in the class, who matched it with a laugh that lit her entire face up. Her ice princess of a best friend though, was rolling her eyes again, giving him a coldly evaluative glance both dismissive and amused at the same time. Seriously, would it kill Maeda to loosen up? This was their second year in the same homeroom, and they were in junior high together! And he had only seen her express less than a range of five emotions at any given time in all these years. Maybe even less than three.

"Takahashi-kun, maybe you should stop making funny faces and actually pay attention to the lesson?"

That voice! Dry, amused, impersonal. His eyes flew back to the speaker, their homeroom teacher. Sex on heels, according to the general sentiment of all the boys in school. Cool and confident, according to the girls. Her eyes twinkled with a special brand of mischief as she met his glare. Her lips moved as if to call his name, forming a small 'o' in slow motion, and he dropped his gaze with a scowl, knowing that he was beaten.

"_Sky_-kun, why don't you tell the class what you thought of the passage I just recited?" Her voice was sweet and silky in triumph. Of course she would. _Gah_. He puffed up his cheeks in an unconscious pout, frantically trying to find the aforementioned passage.

Evil incarnate, that woman. Pure _evil_.

* * *

><p>"Man, it's barely a first week into the new term and Goto-sensei's already on your case." Sasshi commented, tossing stationery and textbook into his bag even as an unmoving Takahashi Sky sprawled unceremoniously like a sacrifice victim on his chair.<p>

"She's evil, I tell you. Evil." Sky muttered, his eyes still closed. Sashihara snorted.

"The other guys would _kill_ to have her attention on them. But you don't seem to even care."

"That's because he's so gay~" Sky cracked one eye open. And nearly fell off his chair at the sight of Oshima Yuko almost nose to nose with him, a shit-eating grin on her face. The sound of his chair legs scraping across tile drew a few curious glances, and not a few titters at his shocked expression.

"What the hell, Oshima?" Yuko laughed again, sitting on the edge of his desk, her legs dangling as she kicked idly at the legs of his chair, now a foot or so away from its original position. Next to him, Sashihara was chuckling. His eyes though, were firmly fixed on the flattering glimpses of Yuko's thighs as her movements shifted her short skirt ever higher. Sky didn't even seem to notice, his face filled with righteous indignation. He huffed a bit at the small girl on his desk, but his expression melted into a grin eventually, caught up in the humour of the situation.

"Good thing we all ended up in the same class again, eh? Even Acchan thinks so, ne~" Yuko beckoned at her best friend, who was holding on to both their bags with that same disinterested expression. At Yuko's words, Maeda Atsuko's face split into something not quite a smirk as she glanced at Sky.

"Daydreaming in class again, Takahashi-kun?" Her voice was sardonic, bordering almost on friendly. Well, that _was_ an improvement from last year.

"Yeah, maybe about Goto-sensei's perfect ass~" Another guy hollered from behind. So someone else saw. Sasshi snickered in perfect sync with Yuko. Maeda's smirk deepened. Sky made a face.

"Why in nine hells would I do something like that?"

"Osuuuuu~" A familiar voice drawled. Sky craned his neck to catch sight of his best friend, but couldn't, at least not while a certain Oshima Yuko was perched on his desk and totally blocking his view. That and Kai was short as hell. Not that he was going to rub it in, no.

"Yo!" Sky raised a hand in greeting, and was met by a firm hand clasp from his best friend. Takahashi Kai, with his ruffled and spiky hair giving him a just out of bed look, had a perpetual lazy smile playing on his lips, givng the impression that he laughed at the world...and that the world laughed along with him (or at him). Contrasted against Sky's slightly more sedate hairstyle and happy-go-lucky attitude towards life, he looked wilder and more like a delinquent. Yet they were best friends, and everyone who saw them together knew why.

"Ah, your gay partner!" Yuko pointed, pretending to swoon. Completely straight-faced next to her, Atsuko was already ready to catch her over-dramatic best friend, though her eyes never left the new arrival. Yuko looked up at her saviour with shining eyes. "My hero~"

"Don't make me drop you." Atsuko deadpanned. Yuko pouted like a wounded puppy. Kai laughed easily, looking at the semi-gathering around Sky's desk.

"So what's this about Goto-sensei's ass? Must be nice to have a hot homeroom teacher. All we have is a midget running ours." Kai complained, loosening the tie on his winter uniform. His blazer and bag were both held casually over one shoulder. No one made the obvious rejoinder, though the quick glances shared within the group made it clear enough. Kai didn't notice, and Sky snorted.

"Dude, I'd trade with you. She rags on me _all_ the time." He picked up his stuff and shoved them into his bag. He was barely taller than Kai, but taller was taller. It made him feel a little better.

"I wouldn't mind~" Kai leaned against Yuko's just vacated spot on Sky's desk, waiting as his best friend grabbed the last of his things and got ready to leave. "There's a katsudon out there with my name on it. Let's just _go_ already!"

"Sauce katsudon, here we come~" Sky punched the air with one fist while the other scooped up his bag. He draped that same arm around his best friend, prompting another "gaaaaay" comment from Yuko. Sky ignored it. "You are so missing out on life, Kai, my friend. Maybe today I will finally enlighten you on the wonders of sauce katsudon."

"Egg is life man, Sky-dude. Katsudon isn't katsudon without _egg_."

"It's all about the sauce!"

"Egg!"

"Sauce!"

And so on and so forth. Yuko watched the bickering pair leave, then nudged her best friend.

"You can stop staring now, Acchan~"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Atsuko said with all the dignity she could summon. Which, admittedly, was a lot. Yuko, however, was not fooled. Her dimples showed clearly with her cheeky little grin.

She was prevented from saying anything though, by an abrupt rush of movement at the classroom door. Sky skidded back in in a dramatic flourish, waving grandly at the rest of the class.

"Adios amigos~ Till we meet again~"

"Bye bye!" Yuko waved back just as enthusiastically, matching the energy level. Sky grinned like a little kid and ran back out, making a lot of noise in general with his best friend, who was whining very vocally about death and katsudon. Never a quiet day with them around. Everyone else moved along with the ease of having lived with the runaway freight train that was Sky for the past year. Nothing new there.

"Gotta love Short and Shorter." Yuko smirked, looking over at Atsuko, who was back in passive mode. "What do you even see in him anyway? Though he _is_ kind of cute."

Atsuko did not dignify that with an answer. Instead, she stalked off with an eager Yuko on her heels. "Come ooooon Acchan~ Aren't we best friends? Tell meeeeee~"

An amused Sashihara watched the crowd clear before finally sauntering out slowly towards his student council meeting. It was good to be back in school.

* * *

><p>"Ah~ Katsudon is the best!" Kai stretched as they made their way down the street. Next to him Sky mimicked the move, though not as exaggeratedly. He gladly let the more exuberant Kai do most of the talking, interjecting at parts to add his piece and gesturing excitedly when he did.<p>

Kai was talking animatedly about the evils of having midget-Yaguchi as homeroom teacher for the second year running when he suddenly realized that his best friend was not by his side. Turning around, he saw his best friend staring intently at something in the display window of a music store.

Jogging over to stand beside his friend, Kai whistled as he noticed the beautiful deluxe Telecaster guitar Sky was boring holes into with his eyes. His whistle went several pitches higher when he noticed the price.

"Someday I will own a guitar like that." Sky said solemnly. Kai raised an eyebrow at his best friend. Though Sky never ever made an issue about it, Kai knew that the boy came from a well off family. It was just the way he referred to certain things or never really looked at the price when ordering at a restaurant. It was that innocence regarding how much things cost that gave him away more than anything else.

"You could get it now." Sky shook his head.

"I mean to earn that guitar. So that it will live up to me, and I to it." His eyes never left the display. Kai shrugged. Sky could get annoyingly cryptic at times, but he learned to live with it. Things usually worked out exactly as he said eventually. Good old hindsight always worked.

"Kai." The 17 year old looked up at his name. Sky had that slightly manic look in his eye that said _'I am going to do something and nothing is going to stop me'_. Kai waited, his own natural enthusiasm already spiking to match the occasion.

"Let's form a band."

* * *

><p><strong><span>Character Notes<span>**

Takahashi Sky: Real life equivalent is Takahashi Ai, and as of today is leader of Morning Musume and Hello!Project. At least, until September 30th. Sotsugyou omedetou, Ai-chan! You will be missed! And I will never forget you.

Sashihara Reno: Real life equivalent is Sashihara Rino from AKB48. An actual wota (re: idol otaku) who knows all the rituals of being a wota. I only just missed meeting her two weeks ago. Darn it.

Oshima Yuko: Of AKB48 fame for the uninitiated. Biggest pervert I know, but I love her smile.

Maeda Atsuko: Also of AKB48. You cannot not know her, she's the face of the group.

Goto-sensei: Otherwise known as Goto Maki. Formerly of Morning Musume, now a soloist (and a soon-to-be retired one at that). Former ace of the group during her tenure as part of Morning Musume.

Takahashi Kai: Yes, it's Kai from Mendol! Gave him/her the real surname of the real life counterpart, Takahashi Minami. Leader of Team A of AKB48. All round dork but lovable for it. Yes, height is an issue. Ganbare, Shorter-kun! (Takahashi Ai is 153cm, 4.5cm taller than the 148.5cm tall Takamina. Yes, the .5 matters)

Yaguchi-sensei (mentioned): Is Yaguchi Mari, formerly of Morning Musume and currently a variety idol. Shortest idol in all Japan (143cm). Hence why Takamina gets to call her a midget. Must make the kid feel better. Fun fact: her husband is 180cm tall. How they kiss is beyond me. It must be supremely awkward - or terribly convenient, if you look at it in another way... /shiftyeyes

**Author's Notes:** Please don't lynch me. I love Morning Musume and kind of like AKB. Why should they be at odds with each other, although they are rivals? All that animosity between diehard fans of both camps is chilling (though nowhere near as outright terrifying as the insanity of Kpop anti-fans). Why can't we all get along? The girls love each other anyway. The fans should be less defensive. XD Live and let live!

But you'll excuse me while I retreat to a bunker with instant noodles and my PBs. Ciao! Expect fortnightly updates, barring real life butting in and my other fics clamouring for airtime. This is Estrea signing off. **badsaints** says hi too!


	2. Chapter 2: So It Begins

**Chapter 2: So It Begins**

"Hey! Let's do this one next!"

Kai looked over at the song Sky was pointing to on his Guitar Freaks machine. He made a face.

"AKB48? _Maji_?" Sky had already proceeded, heedless of the skeptical tone in Kai's voice. The smaller-sized boy sighed and turned back to his Drum Mania set, tapping the song Sky had indicated and confirming the selection.

The explosion of sound when they simultaneously sprang into the new song drew quite a few spectators. Sky's fingers flew across the buttons on the guitar controller he held, rocking it like the real thing. Next to him, Kai hit the beat with gusto, the combined electronical sounds momentarily drowning out the other ambient noises in the arcade.

As they drew towards the climax, a voice suddenly joined in their performance.

_"I want you~ I need you~ I love you~"_

Kai risked a quick look back to spot the singer. A grinning Oshima Yuko waved back at him, already starting to dance along to the song. Sky didn't even notice, his attention fully consumed by the notes he had to keep pace with. He was smiling though, because he was having fun. If he had heard the singing he most certainly didn't respond to it.

"_Heavy Rotation~__"_

Yuko drew the song to a close as the boys cleared their respective stages. Sky had set a new high score. He put his initials in proudly, and no sooner had he done so he found himself suddenly cap-less with a tinkle of familiar laughter behind him.

"Hey, what the...! Oshima! Give it back!"

Sky nearly tripped on his high-top sneakers as he whirled around, dropping the guitar controller in the process. Yuko put on her prize with its stylised designs swirling in hypnotic patterns, the rest of her long hair flying free from underneath the cap as she backed away from the irate boy. She danced just out of reach of Sky's grasp, laughing all the way as she ran back to hide behind Atsuko, who was calmly eating Pocky without a change in expression, even with Sky charging towards her position. Yuko quickly ducked behind her best friend, using the taller girl as a shield.

Atsuko looked amused as Yuko and Sky started orbiting around her, her gaze eventually settling on Kai, who was just as tickled by the childish way their friends threw jibes at each other. Kai met her gaze, and they shared a mutual look of exasperation at the familiar antics. That lasted for as long as either of them could hold the gaze, which was not more than a moment, since both looked away almost immediately, and thus missed seeing the other blush.

Yuko noticed though, and the moment of noticing cost her: Sky managed to grab hold of her from behind, partially pinning her arms to her sides as he pretty much bear-hugged her to hold her down. She yelped, struggling against him.

"Acchan! Catch!" Yuko managed to wriggle one arm free - who said WWE taught you nothing? - and tossed the cap to her best friend, who caught it without blinking, a half-eaten Pocky stick still dangling out of her mouth. Sky made a little sound of outrage as he dropped Yuko - though not before she got an elbow into his solar plexus (ow).

Sky leapt a few times in frustration as Maeda kept his precious cap painfully out of reach with one arm raised high, all while still managing to snack on her Pocky despite having only one hand to work with. Why did Maeda have to be taller than him? She wasn't the kind of person you could lay a finger on either, much less roughhouse in the way he was doing with Oshima earlier. So he was stuck. And Oshima wasn't helping with her evil laughter and shouts of "good job, Acchan!".

Desperate times called for desperate measures, Sky decided. His eyes fell on the Pocky, and he blurted out without thinking.

"I'll buy you five more boxes of Pocky if you give it back to me!"

A stupid bribe, if there was such a thing. If Sky had actually been thinking clearly, he would have facepalmed already. As things were, he was already at his wit's end.

What was more surprising was that it actually had some effect. Maeda seemed to think about it, an almost playful glint shining in her usually impassive eyes. Sky could swear she was smirking (at him? or something else?). Her hand was lowering...

"Acchan, if you give it back to him, I'll..." Yuko ran over and whispered something into her ear. Atsuko narrowed her eyes at her best friend. Then without warning, she jammed the cap back on Yuko's head, a wicked grin playing on her lips as she backed away. Caught off guard, Yuko was defenseless when Sky pounced, reclaiming his cap with a triumphant flourish and crowing his victory.

"I didn't give it back to him~" Atsuko called out from a safe distance away, waving almost mockingly at her best friend. Yuko stuck her tongue out at the smug girl, pouting as Sky put on his cap again, carefully angling it to make sure it looked cool. His efforts were ruined in the next instant when Yuko whacked the bill of his cap down just for the heck of it, blinding him. That led to another minor scuffle with much cheek-pulling and name-calling.

"Those kids..." Kai shook his head, wandering over to stand by the bemused Atsuko, whose only reaction to his presence was to shift her weight to her other foot, and even that was barely noticeable if one wasn't looking. Not that Kai was looking, not really. Ok fine, he kind of _was_. Checking Maeda out, that is. He had never seen her outside of school, and there was something about the curls in her hair that seemed extra tempting to touch today...

Not that he dared to get anywhere close to her Highness. Kai felt depressingly short next to her. His sneakers added almost an extra inch to his height, but the girl was still taller than him. He stared down at his toes, wondering what it would take to finally hit that growth phase that had been denied him throughout puberty.

"It looks like fun though." Kai jumped a little at Atsuko's comment. He rarely heard her speak, even though he hung out a lot at Sky's class. He looked up at her. She looked like she was smiling, and it made her look oddly endearing, which was surprising given how cold she tended to be at school. The half-smile magnified when she turned her head to face him, one hand extended and offering her Pocky to him.

"Doesn't change the fact that they're both childish." Kai shrugged, taking one of the Pocky sticks and crunching into it with relish.

"Saves _me_ from being the target of _that_, at least." Atsuko deadpanned, pointing with her Pocky stick at where Yuko had somehow managed to get Sky into a headlock. Kai burst out laughing, both at the ridiculousness of what was going on, and at the matter-of-fact way Atsuko had stated her case.

"Sky must be taking it easy on her. He never gets trapped that quick." Kai stared for a moment, before snorting in realization. "That sneaky bastard."

"What?" Atsuko looked over at him curiously. Kai chuckled nervously.

"Ehehehe...nothing..." He was _not_ going to tell the girl next to him that his best friend was having way too much fun letting _her_ best friend all but rub his face into her boobs. Kai was nothing if not loyal to his buddy. Even if the guy was a sneaky bastard.

Meanwhile, Sky had gotten free, and for some reason the spectating two could not fathom, the evenly matched pair started laughing at something or other. Atsuko was pretty sure she caught Yuko calling Sky "gaaaaaay" again, which only made Sky laugh harder as he threw one arm around the girl, the two of them jogging over to close the circle.

"Since we're all here, let's hang out together!" Sky suggested enthusiastically. Yuko nodded just as enthusiastically, the hyper duo already ready to tackle the next activity.

"Like Energizer bunnies." Kai stared after the other two, then shook his head as he absentmindedly grabbed hold of Atsuko's wrist, pulling her along. "Come on, we're falling behind."

Atsuko flushed at the contact, a genuine smile playing on her lips as she allowed herself to follow. They plowed through - or rather, Kai plowed through - the throng of people milling around one of the games, finally joining the other pair.

"Man, what the hell are they all crowded around like that for?" Kai complained. Being short, he could barely see above the shoulders of the crowd. It was Atsuko, the tallest of all four of them, who answered.

"Some guy's on the Para Para machine." She paused thoughtfully. "He's actually pretty smooth."

"Oooh?" Yuko chirped, placing her hands on Sky's shoulders as she started jumping to see, using him as a springboard. "Oh! Isn't that a kid from our school?"

"How the hell would you know that? He can't be wearing his uniform on a weekend!" Sky grumbled. Yuko grinned, tapping her earlobe.

"That kid caught my eye from among all the ickle firsties this year~ All dressed up like a punk even in is hope for the next generation." Yuko wiped an imaginary tear from her eye. "So proud..."

"Ah! You're right, I've seen those headphones before!" Kai finally caught a glimpse of the mystery boy. "He's pretty flashy for a first year, really stood out."

"Whatever. We're burning daylight here, people. Come on!" Sky grabbed hold of a mallet from the crocodile bashing game. "I bet I can do better than you!"

"We'll see about that!" Yuko grabbed the other mallet, and the game began in earnest. They even played fair...at least, until Yuko hit Sky over the head with her mallet when he wasn't looking. Not even Atsuko could resist giggling at the inpromptu mallet war that erupted there and then. Kai was less restrained and laughed like a hyena. He'd forgotten to let go of Atsuko's wrist, a fact overlooked by everyone except the girl herself. Not that she was protesting.

Kai breathed heavily to get his breath back, looking down...to see his hand where it had been all this time. Yelping, he dropped Atsuko's hand with a pitiful expression that was a combination of embarrassment and terror. To his surprise, Atsuko only shook her head and laughed, actually _laughed_, at him. Her teeth were very white, he noticed in a daze. He wondered what universe he had woken up in today. Surely not the usual, where girls were a menace to him normally. Here before him was a pretty girl who wasn't out to get him, even if she _was_ laughing. Life was good.

"That hurt!" Sky complained as they returned.

"Wimp!" Yuko taunted, dodging again when Sky made a half hearted swipe at her. They pretended to glare at each other for a moment, then broke into irrepressible grins after approximately two seconds.

"Guys..." Kai shook his head, the return of the noisier pair snapping him out of his dazed state. Next to him, Maeda also returned to her usual inscrutable calm, finishing the rest of her Pocky without so much as a change in expression.

"You two should play too! Oh I know, let's race cars! Come on Acchan, show 'em your mad skillz!" Yuko egged her best friend on. Atsuko stared at her, perplexed.

"I have mad skills?"

"You don't know how she's like when she gets all competitive..." Yuko stage-whispered, making the two boys go "oooh" and eye Maeda speculatively.

Approximately two minutes later, there was a very loud and indignant "HEY!" arising from the row of racing machines.

"Maeda! That's cheating!" Sky howled as said girl sideswiped his car into the wall for the second time during a turn. Maeda didn't turn or say anything in response, but Kai, on her other side, caught her smirking as she took the pole position. Then he ended up ramming straight into the wall at a sharp turn, allowing Sky to race past him with a whoop.

"Beaten by a girl...MY LIFE IS OVER." Sky clutched the side of the racing machine and started thudding his forehead against it. Kai patted him on the back.

"At least you didn't end up _dead last_." The smaller of the two boys muttered. Sky perked up.

"That's true!"

Behind the boys, Yuko high-fived the winner of the race, who had a lazy cat-like smile on her face as she got out of the seat. She sauntered behind her hyperactive squirrel of a best friend as the latter bounced over to whack them both over the back of the head.

"Losers can buy us dessert!"

"There were conditions?"

Kai wisely backed out of the impending argument. Experience had taught him that 1) you just can't win against a girl, and 2) even when you win, you still lose. The wisdom of a boy with two sisters.

Sidling back to where Maeda herself was wisely staying out of the fray, the tiny boy noticed her staring off into space...and followed her gaze to something in the distance. The boy "hmm'ed" to himself, then walked over to the UFO catcher.

Two minutes later, he was back, and Atsuko blinked when the doggy plushie she had been eyeing earlier was thrust into her hands.

"What...?" She flushed slightly, grateful suddenly for the strobe lights from the various gaming machines that hid the fact. Kai scratched at his head awkwardly, then gave a lopsided grin.

"I like dogs too." He shrugged, then went on tentatively. "If you don't like it, I can always..." He reached out to take it back, but the girl's grip on the plushie only tightened as she hugged it to herself.

"Thank you." Atsuko beamed at him, making Kai grin foolishly back, oddly proud of himself.

"Acchan! Sky is buying us all dessert!" Yuko ran over and jumped on her friend's back. She noticed the plushie and reached for it, but Atsuko yanked it out of reach and shook Yuko off her back with a practiced twist.

"That's great. Thanks, Takahashi-kun." Maeda wasn't exactly smirking at him, but there was just _something_ in that smile that made Sky growl in frustration. Kai punched his buddy on the arm to break the scowl.

"Dude, let it go."

Sky muttered something intelligible to himself. Kai only caught a "was planning to treat everyone anyway", but that was enough. Kai chuckled. Sky just hated being forced to do anything, even if he had been planning to do it in the first place.

Meanwhile, Yuko was trying to get hold of the doggy plushie that Acchan seemed to be guarding with her life, judging from the death grip she had on it with one hand. Her other hand was quite occupied with shoving Yuko away by the face.

"I just wanna hold it for a while~ It's so cute!" Yuko whined. Atsuko's face was impassive.

"No."

"But I'm your best friend! Acchaaaaaaaaan~~~"

"No."

"Acchan is mean!"

"So?"

* * *

><p>"Ah~ So sleepy..." Oshima Yuko yawned as she slumped over her bento box. Next to her, Atsuko unpacked her multi-tiered box, laden with enough food to feed four people. Except it wasn't for four people. It was all for her.<p>

"Then you shouldn't have stayed so long for karaoke after dinner with the boys." Atsuko said sensibly. She had left early along with Kai, halfway through the karaoke session. They _did_ have school the next day. Yuko yawned loudly again.

"But it was fun! Even though that stupid boy kept fighting me for the mic." The stupid boy she referred to was obviously Sky, who was currently lounged comfortably in his corner, melon bread in hand as he chatted idly with Sashihara.

"Just what time did you guys leave anyway?" Atsuko had to ask. Yuko lifted her head, finally making an effort to actually start on lunch.

"Oh...somewhere past midnight? The trains stopped running, at any rate. That stupid boy sent me home by taxi...how he has that much money, I don't know."

Atsuko was about to open her mouth for a clever follow-up when the relative peace of the classroom was disrupted by an enthusiastic Kai bursting in with a much taller boy in tow.

"Oh! Riku! Finally decide to join the student council yet?" Sashihara waved in greeting, half-eaten yakisoba bread in his free hand. The hapless captive shook his head faintly, looking around in confusion as Kai pulled him down to sit opposite Sky. The incoming midget swiped one of the melon bread off Sky's table, wolfing it down even as Sky went all "hey!" with his mouth still full.

"I found our bassist." Kai said finally, after swallowing the bread. He gestured at the baffled looking newcomer, who still didn't seem to know what was going on.

Sky looked at the interloper speculatively, half of his bread still dangling out of his mouth as he chewed slowly. Without warning, he suddenly grabbed hold of the new boy's hand, spreading the fingers and rubbing his thumb over the outstretched hand in a disturbingly intimate gesture. The other boy froze, colouring in embarrassment, but was otherwise too shocked to pull away.

"There goes Gay-kun again." Yuko mocked from her seat, prompting a spray of laughter from her best friend. Atsuko snorted, hiding her chuckles - and her gaze - behind her water bottle.

"You pass." Sky proclaimed solemnly, nodding in approval before releasing his grip.

"Welcome, leader!" Kai beamed as he clapped a solid hand on their latest bandmate's shoulder.

The new 'leader' blinked slowly, then seemed to catch up to the events that had entirely preceded him. He looked in bewilderment at the grinning midgets, then with a vague frown at the snickering Sashihara. Then he remembered his manners, leaping to his feet and bowing.

"Ah. Hajimemashite. Kojima Riku _desu_."

Meanwhile, three seats away and utterly focused on the shortest one of the bunch, Atsuko almost missed the fact that her usually noisy best friend was suddenly very quiet. It was only when Yuko failed to make her usual "gay" remark as Sky latched onto the newcomer like a remora that Atsuko turned to see just what exactly her best friend was doing.

"He. Is. Gorgeous." Yuko gushed suddenly, though only after repeated pokings to the arm. Atsuko followed her gaze to the tallest of the trio, who was looking quite harrassed and appealing to a highly amused Sashihara to 'save him'.

Atsuko started laughing for no apparent reason, startling not a few people around her, and drawing the attention of the midget she had ironically been staring at earlier. Beside him, Sky was clinging to Riku and demanding that the taller boy "give up some of his height to those in need". The poor boy looked more than a little rattled.

"Sasshi! Help!"

The student council president rose...and walked right past them.

"Sorry Riku, no can do. Gotta head to a student council meeting. You know, the one that you keep refusing to join." With a roguish grin that stopped more than a few female hearts around the room, Sasshi waved airily and sauntered off, leaving Riku to his fate.

* * *

><p>"...so we have to collect and submit each club's appeal forms for funding to the committee before Friday <em>blah blah blah<em>..."

Sashihara Reno was sure that the 'blah's were words of some importance, but his brain refused to process them anymore. Instead, he amused himself by pretending to take notes on whatever was said, cradling his cellphone in his lap with his other hand.

He certainly hadn't actually asked for the job, but somehow he was nominated and even won, thanks to the fanclub that had somehow sprung into existence around him. His only contribution to the whole election process was basically to smile and show up. The rabid fangirls did the rest.

This was very much to the irritation of his incredibly capable second-in-command, vice president Niigaki Risa, otherwise known as Gaki-san (to her chagrin). To be honest, she did most of the work involved in actually running the council, and was the _de facto_ power executing the duties of the student council. Sasshi only showed up at meetings to prevent her from hunting him down to yell at him about responsibility and what-not. Personally, he would rather step down and let the girl take over. He had better things to do with his time.

His cellphone screen lit up, indicating a new message. He had wisely muted the sound previously. Gaki-san would rip him a new hole if there were any interruptions. He read the message discreetly, eyes widening slightly before they narrowed, flicking around the room quickly to assess the current situation.

"We also have to liase with the various clubs about the recruitment event for the first years next week. _Kaichou_, I will need you to...eh? _Kaichou?_"

There was only an empty seat where Sashihara used to be, perhaps a minute or so ago. Niigaki gaped at the conspicuously empty place, trying to process just what had happened.

"If you're looking for _kaichou-sama_, he left that-a-way just now!" A girl with sleepy looking eyes piped up brightly, pausing in her doodling of turtles on her notepad as she pointed to the back door.

"KAME! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME HE LEFT?" A furious Niigaki Risa howled at her hapless-looking cousin, who tilted her head innocently to one side, raven-dark hair cascading in silky waves over her shoulder.

"But _he's_ the president, so I thought..." 'Kame' went on guilelessly, leaving the vice president to rage impotently against "that irresponsible cad with more looks than sense".

"I wonder if Gaki-san doesn't actually like him..." She wondered aloud, sketching a crude image of a raging dinosaur (or squirrel, she would tell you if you had asked) chasing what looked like a pufferfish (or chicken, as she would insist - art had never been her strong point).

The next second saw Kamei Eri almost being choked to death by her suddenly homicidal cousin. The rest of the council ignored this. The things people get used to...

* * *

><p><strong>Character Notes<strong>

_Kojima Riku: _Riku from Persona, but we gave him the family name of the actress that played him in Mendol, aka Kojima Haruna. Simple, no?

_Niigaki Risa:_ Of Morning Musume. Current leader and also the oldest in the group at the ripe old age of 23. Her nickname "Gaki-san" is a play on her surname, and puns with the fact that Gaki means brat in Japanese. You can see why she isn't pleased about being called Gaki-san in the story. XD

_Kamei Eri_: Formerly of Morning Musume. Airhead aho who was often the boke to Gaki-san's tsukkomi role. They are popularly known as GakiKame.

**Author's Note: **Took a while to update, but real life sucks.


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